Pathology
Lessons
Illustrated, high-yield walkthroughs of the pathology concepts the boards test most.
A Step 1 walk through the cell-injury spectrum: reversible versus irreversible change, the six morphologic patterns of necrosis, and the intrinsic/extrinsic apoptosis pathways — with the buzzwords, markers, and mechanisms boards reward.
Inflammation is the body's protective response to injury — acute (neutrophil-driven, vascular) versus chronic (macrophage-driven, fibrotic) — followed by wound healing through defined phases. This lesson locks down the leukocyte adhesion cascade, chemical mediators and their drug targets, granulomatous/adhesion defects, collagen chemistry, and the classic healing failures boards love to test.
A board-focused tour of neoplasia: multistep carcinogenesis, oncogenes vs tumor-suppressor genes, high-yield chemical and viral carcinogens, and the tumor markers (with next-best-step decisions) the USMLE loves to test.
A board-focused walkthrough of the four cellular adaptations — hypertrophy, hyperplasia, atrophy, and metaplasia — plus dysplasia, the preneoplastic bridge to cancer (not a true adaptation). Organized by mechanism (size vs. number vs. cell-type swap), classic organ examples, and the reversibility rule: everything is reversible until atypical cells invade through the basement membrane. Built around Step 1 vignettes (Barrett esophagus, postmenopausal bleeding) and next-best-step decisions.
A board-focused walkthrough of tissue repair: regeneration vs. scar, the ordered phases of wound healing with their cell types and collagen switches, growth-factor and nutrient biology, and the classic vignettes of impaired (scurvy, dehiscence) and excessive (keloid) healing.
A boards-focused walkthrough of the four core hemodynamic disorders — edema (Starling forces), thrombosis (Virchow's triad), embolism, and infarction — with classic vignette buzzwords, next-best-step decisions, and a red-vs-white infarct comparison.
A board-focused Step 1 lesson on amyloidosis covering the unifying β-pleated-sheet/Congo-red concept, the clinically important types (AL, AA, ATTR, Aβ2M), and the classic next-best-step logic for diagnosing and typing systemic and cardiac amyloid.
A high-yield Step 1 lesson on how tumors are graded (differentiation + mitoses) versus staged (TNM extent), why stage outweighs grade for prognosis, and the routes, classic patterns, and molecular steps of metastasis — the definitive hallmark of malignancy.
Sample questions
Stems only. Sign up free to see answer choices, correct option, and the rationale.
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A 43-year-old female has had a headache for a couthe hospital, she succumbed to pneumonia, At autopsy, the ple of weeks along with a fever, She has been healthy, — brain is atrophic, and the centrum semiovale and central except for a recent severe respiratory tract infection. A white matter are shrunken, gray, and translucent on gross head CT scan shows a sharply demarcated, 3-cm, ringexamination, Microscopically, there is widespread myelin enhancing lesion in the right occipital region, A lumbar — loss with sparing of subcortical U fibers, Which of the puncture is performed, and the CSF obtained shows a cell following degenerative CNS diseases is most likely to excount of 4 lymphocytes and 8 neutrophils, along with inplain her course? creased protein and normal glucose levels. The best diag- (A) Metachromatic leukodystrophy nosis 18 (B) Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy
A 62-year-old male has difficulty with voluntary movements because of muscular rigidity. He has an expressionless facies, When sitting, his hands have a “pill-rolling” tremor, Which of the following pathologic findings would best characterize his underlying disease condition?
Sample flashcards
A 49-year-old male presents with symptoms that developed following a long weekend of binge drinking. His serum reveals a γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT) level of 65 IU/L. A liver biopsy reveals fatty change (steatosis) of numerous hepatocytes. This patient’s liver abnormality is most likely the result of You picked: A. Decreased free fatty acid delivery to the liver
Histologic sections of skin from an area of sunburn would most likely reveal You picked: C. Chronic pyelonephritis
Primary type II hyperlipidemia (familial hypercholesterolemia) results from a defect in You picked: C. Apolipoprotein E
A 54-year-old male experienced the onset of severe chest pain, An electrocardiogram demonstrated changes consistent with an acute myocardial infarction. He was given thrombolytic therapy with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). However, his serum creatine kinase increased after this therapy, Which of the following events most likely occurred’? You picked: D. lncreased synthesis of creatine kinase
Administration of which one of the following substances would theoretically correct the abnormal bleeding laboratory tests in an individual who is deficient in coagulation factor V? You picked: C. Fibrinogen
A 45-year-old man presents with shortness of breath, cough with mucoid sputum, and some weight loss, and has diffuse, bilateral alveolar infiltrates on chest x-ray. Pulmonary function tests reveal decreased diffusing capacity and hypoxia. The patient had worked for several years at grinding aluminum. The photomicrograph below is from a lung biopsy. Your diagnosis is You picked: A. Pneumocystis cariniipneumonia
FAQ
What's covered in the Pathology topic?
Pathology covers high-yield mechanisms, clinical presentations, diagnostic workup, and management — drawn from First Aid, Pathoma, and the NBME content outline.
How many practice questions does Pathology have?
709 board-style multiple-choice questions and 108 spaced-repetition flashcards. Sign up free to drill them with adaptive difficulty and a Socratic AI tutor that explains every wrong answer.
Is Pathology on USMLE Step 1 or Step 2 CK?
Pathology appears on both Step 1 (foundational mechanisms) and Step 2 CK (clinical decision-making). Our questions are tagged by exam target so you can filter to just the Step you're studying.
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